HOW LONG has the Maulidur Rasul been celebrated in Brunei? Sadly, we will never know when or how Maulidur Rasul was first celebrated in Brunei.

What is known is that Islam came to Brunei in the 11th or 12th century and was entrenched further when the first Brunei Sultan, Sultan Muhammad Shah converted to Islam when he married a Johore Princess in 1363.

By the time of Sultan Sharif Ali, Alonso Bertran, a Spanish traveller described Brunei’s main mosque in 1578 was as high as five storeys. Islam was already held in high regard then and most likely so was the practise of Maulidur Rasul.

One very early vague account was a description in Peter Blundell’s book “The City of Many Waters” published in 1923 about life in Bunei in the late 1890s to early 1900s, was that during Maulidur Rasul, people in Brunei do not work, “... he was then a happy man, especially if a few Mohammedan saints’ d…

LAST Monday, a news article on The Brunei Times on the closure of the Tamu Kianggeh caused a furore among vendors as well as regular visitors to the tamu.

Some vendors expressed their grievances on the idea of losing the tamu, which for most of them, have been an integral part of their lives. Some were shocked and some were frustrated as most have inherited their stalls from their parents and grandparents and that it is a part of their heritage.

Although some vendors agreed that even though visitors to the tamu have decreased over the years, they argued that it remains as one of the most visited locations in Brunei.

Another reason for the furore was that the replacement new Tamu Gadong was not suitable for them with some vendors incapable of going to Tamu Gadong and were unwilling to abandon their livelihood at Kianggeh.

It was argued that it was difficult to use boats to go to Gadong as low tides…

IT WAS 74 years ago this month that Brunei Darussalam was dragged reluctantly into World War II. On 16 December 1941, 10,000 Japanese troops arrived in Kuala Belait. Within a week, they occupied the entire country. They did not face any opposition as the British, despite the treaty between them and Brunei, left only a tiny detachment of a Punjabi Regiment in Kuching, Sarawak to protect the three territories of British Borneo of Brunei, Sarawak and then North Borneo.

At first, the Japanese, despite being occupiers, were not “too much hated” by the people though it was “very dangerous if one did not toe their line”. The Japanese were seen as “harsh” and “drove the workers hard”, and during the early stages of the occupation, the Kempetai (Japanese Military Police) did not execute anyone but they were greatly feared.

Towards the end of the war, the former benevolent Japanese governor was re…

IF YOU are a Kampong Ayer aficionado or a former resident, the destruction of all the old houses by the Brunei River bank, will surely bring back memories. Over the years, many villages in Kampong Ayer have disappeared and many familiar villages names remain only in memories.

If we want to compare the changes with what Brunei used to have in Brunei’s Water Village of the past, the one book which must be read is the book written by Sir Spenser Buckingham St John entitled “Life in the Forests of the Far East” first published in 1862 in two volumes by Smith, Elder and Co in London.

Fisheries Expansion Goes Onshore in Brunei
Oxford Business Group 26.11.2015

Onshore developments, including aquaculture and processing facilities, could help Brunei Darussalam unlock the potential of its burgeoning fisheries industry.

The Sultanate is keen to overcome supply gaps and boost the sector’s contribution to GDP, particularly in the value-added segment, as part of a national drive to diversify the economy away from oil and gas.

Maritime legacy

A one-time maritime hub, Brunei Darussalam’s natural resources – which include 161 km of coastline and an extensive, 36,600-sq-km exclusive economic zone – should support the country’s efforts to expand fisheries revenues.

The sector’s current share of economic output remains low, at just short of 1% of GDP when combined with both forestry and agriculture as of the second quarter of 2015, according to the Department of Statistics. However, the fisheries segment in particular has recorded substantial growth over the last year, expanding…